Stephen Pang Leads the Main Event
This year's Main Event, with a buy-in of 2.5 million KRW (approximately $1,700), attracted a record 1,393 entries, generating a massive prize pool of 3,008,540,000 KRW (around $2,148,960).
After four demanding days of competition, only nine players remain, led by Hong Kong professional Stephen Pang (San Hon Pang) with a stack of 13,545,000 chips.
Close behind him is China's Shoumin Zhang, while Thai legend Phachara Wongwichit is also drawing attention as he aims to become the first player in APT history to capture two "Mega Lion" titles.
Japanese players dominate the final table, occupying five seats. Each finalist is guaranteed $27,560, with the winner set to take home a massive $374,085 and a package to the APT Championship in Taipei.
Main Event Final Table Composition:
|
Rank |
Player |
Country |
Stack |
|
1. |
San Hon "Stephen" Pang |
Hong Kong |
13,545,000 |
|
2. |
Shoumin Zhang |
China |
10,585,000 |
|
3. |
Tempei Kotani |
Japan |
6,935,000 |
|
4. |
Shinichiro Kano |
Japan |
6,935,000 |
|
5. |
Phachara Wongwichit |
Thailand |
5,610,000 |
|
6. |
Takeru Endo |
Japan |
4,215,000 |
|
7. |
Yifu He |
USA |
3,450,000 |
|
8. |
Kazuki Koyama |
Japan |
2,275,000 |
|
9. |
Ryo Fujita |
Japan |
2,130,000 |
Japanese Minowa Achieves Lifetime Victory
The prestigious two-day Zodiac Classic event, with a buy-in of 3 million KRW, attracted 403 entries, boosting the prize pool to an impressive 1,044,576,000 KRW.
Japanese player Masatoshi Minowa took the title and the top prize after an exciting conclusion, marking his first major title and career-high win.
His victory brought him over 155 million KRW and a ticket to the APT Championship.
Zodiac Classic Event #74 Final Table Results
|
Position |
Player |
Country |
Winnings |
|
1. |
Masatoshi Minowa |
Japan |
155,187,000 KRW |
|
2. |
Xiao Zhang |
China |
144,917,000 KRW |
|
3. |
Renji Mao |
China |
118,242,000 KRW |
|
4. |
Trung Hieu Tran |
Vietnam |
74,100,000 KRW |
|
5. |
Xinze Li |
China |
58,640,000 KRW |
|
6. |
Yita Choong |
Australia |
45,140,000 KRW |
|
7. |
Shigeaki Okada |
Japan |
33,600,000 KRW |
|
8. |
Wei Zhu |
China |
24,320,000 KRW |
|
9. |
Haibo Yang |
China |
19,680,000 KRW |
Wai Kiat Lee Finally Triumphs
The high-stakes Baby Superstar Challenge with a buy-in of 10 million KRW (approximately $7,700) marked a long-awaited triumph for Malaysian professional Wai Kiat Lee.
Despite accumulating over $26 million in tournament winnings, Lee had yet to claim an APT series title until now. He ended his wait for the lion-adorned trophy amidst a field of 33 entries, which generated a prize pool of 294,624,000 KRW.
Baby Superstar Challenge Event #48 Final Table Results
|
Position |
Player |
Country |
Winnings |
|
1. |
Wai Kiat Lee |
Malaysia |
109,004,000 KRW |
|
2. |
Dmitrll Kravchenko |
Russia |
75,130,000 KRW |
|
3. |
Bin Duan |
China |
47,880,000 KRW |
|
4. |
Nevan Chang |
Taiwan |
34,320,000 KRW |
|
5. |
Chih Wei Fan |
Taiwan |
28,290,000 KRW |
Sources: APT, SoMuchPoker, X